A Geelong food relief service that has seen demand rise by 50 per cent over the past two years is among 23 organisations to share in almost $1 million through this year’s Give Where You Live Foundation grants.<\/p>\n
The Outpost has received $30,000 to support its after-hours meal service, which provides food seven nights a week and three lunches each week for people experiencing hardship.<\/p>\n
The funding forms part of the foundation’s latest grant round.<\/p>\n
Foundation chief executive Zac Lewis said this year’s applications reflected the growing impact of cost-of-living pressures, with 60 per cent seeking funding for food security initiatives and 40 per cent focused on homelessness.<\/p>\n
“Those figures tell a powerful story about the challenges people in our community are experiencing and reinforce why sustained investment is so important,” he said.<\/p>\n
The foundation has distributed almost $1 million to 23 organisations across the Geelong region, supporting frontline services as well as projects aimed at tackling longer-term social challenges.<\/p>\n
Among the recipients is The Outpost, which has been providing after-hours food relief in Geelong since 1990.<\/p>\n
Outpost chair Amy Hunter said the funding would help the organisation continue meeting growing demand.<\/p>\n
The service distributed almost 63,000 meals in the last financial year.<\/p>\n
“The Outpost isn’t just a meal service; it’s a lifeline that reaches far beyond the plate,” Hunter said.<\/p>\n
“This grant of $30,000, equates to an incredible 9,803 nutritional meals we’ll be able to distribute in our community and will provide ongoing comfort and support to those we serve, nurturing connection and providing a hand up when it’s needed most.”<\/p>\n
The annual grants are complemented by the foundation’s ongoing multi-year funding for The Good Neighbourhood Project, Geelong Foodshare and the Neighbourhood Economics initiative.<\/p>\n
The foundation has also launched its Innovation Fund, which provides grants for organisations to test and evaluate new approaches to complex social issues before they can be adopted more broadly.<\/p>\n
This year’s funding will support a project by Meli focused on preventing and responding to youth homelessness, and another by The Power In You Project to help people transitioning from the justice system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Geelong food relief service that has seen demand rise by 50 per cent over the past two years is among 23 organisations to share in almost $1 million through this year’s Give Where You Live Foundation grants. The Outpost has received $30,000 to support its after-hours meal service, which provides food seven nights a […]<\/p>\n